Vol 2 Chapter 64: , The battle of Constantinople

After several days of hard work, the First Army finally settled the fortresses along the way and came to Constantinople!
Constantinople is located at the confluence of Eurasia. The terrain is an irregular triangular peninsula. The terrain stands tall and surrounded by water on three sides with a natural barrier, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.
At this moment, General Popov, who was investigating the terrain on the spot, took a breath!
There are long and narrow straits on the north and south sides of Constantinople, acting as natural barriers; two tall walls have been built on the land to connect with the Balkan Mountains! The city is again densely packed with fortresses and fortresses, criss-crossed!
Popov put down the telescope in his hand and exclaimed, "This battle is not easy to fight!"
Petrov nodded and said, "Constantinople has been occupied by the Ottoman Empire in 1453, and it has been more than 500 years. The Turks have been operating for more than 500 years. This city can be said to be solid!
Now we are going to tear up this fortress city. After this battle, we must have a place in the history of world war! "
Speaking of this, Petrov's eyes have burst into a hot light!
The siege war has begun, and Constantinople's invincible defense in the cold weapon era has become shaky under the baptism of artillery at this moment!
Ferdinand, far in the Sofia region, was disrupted by a sudden donation.
As soon as the Balkan War broke out, the Orthodox Church in Bulgaria took action. Schliment suggested to Ferdinand to start a war in the name of "jihad", but Ferdinand decisively rejected it!
But the Orthodox Church in Bulgaria did not stop. They sought help from Orthodox dioceses all over the world to raise funds and materials.
Ferdinand did not treat it as the same thing. The Balkan War in history is an example. The church did not provide much help!
In fact, this was also the case at the beginning of the war. The attitudes of the major dioceses were indifferent. In addition to supporting the public opinion, they were able to deal with it in actual action!
But when the Bulgarian army officially attacked Constantinople, the situation changed. Except for Jerusalem, which was ruled by the Ottoman Empire, there was no response, other regions launched huge fundraising activities!
Needless to say, in the Balkans, believers form volunteers every day to help the war!
Ferdinand still underestimated the influence of the Orthodox Church. As one of the three mainstream religions in the Christian world, its influence is still huge, and it has raised millions of pounds in just a few days!
To be honest, Ferdinand didn't want to take this money at all. There is no free lunch in the world!
"Have you figured out their purpose? I don't believe that it's purely for faith, they just donate money and work unselfishly!" Ferdinand asked concerned.
Fhu said with some hesitation: "The Grand Duke is planning to build Constantinople into a religious municipality. There seems to be the shadow of the Russians in it. We don't want us to control Constantinople!"
Ferdinand thought for a while and said: "It seems that the Russians can't sit still! Can launch so many Orthodox dioceses at the same time to act together, in addition to the Russians in the world, I can't think of other forces with such a strong strength!"
Prime Minister Constantine asked in astonishment: "Grand Duke, if the Russians have an idea of ​​Constantinople, they can put it forward directly. We cannot refuse!"
Foreign Secretary Metjeev replied hesitantly: "This is probably related to the current international situation. The Russians are afraid that they will directly obtain the sovereignty of Constantinople, which will be interpreted by the outside world as a prelude to the hegemony of the Mediterranean. The sensitive nerves of people and Italians!
Now the Russians now have a strategic focus on the Far East. They control Constantinople to ensure their strategic security in the Black Sea. They have no energy to invest in the Mediterranean hegemony! "
Suddenly Ferdinand laughed and said: "This is also a good thing for us! The Russians' strategic focus is still in the Far East, and our value is great!
Tell the Russians that in view of the unique strategic value of Constantinople, we are ready to build it into a military port, as the base camp of the Bulgarian Navy! "
Everyone's expressions changed, and Chekov said unwillingly: "Grand Duke, we just abandon Constantinople, it is better to establish a religious freedom city!"
Ferdinand interrupted: "No! Large religion is too harmful, and the secular must be strictly separated!"
Ferdinand’s true thought was that the Russians took it, and they could take it back after World War I. After the establishment of a religious free city, then never want to take it back again!
...
In the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Nicholas II, who had just received Ferdinand’s offer, squirted out, and then asked in disbelief, "Is Ferdinand’s brain flooded? Just throw Constantinople out. , Did not mention conditions?"
The Minister of Foreign Affairs explained embarrassingly: "Your Majesty the Great Tsar, he is a Catholic, and he naturally doesn't like the Orthodox Free City!"
Nicholas II thought for a while and said: "That's right! If an Orthodox free city really popped up in Bulgaria, he would be embarrassed as a Catholic king!
What does he want to change? "
"The Bulgarians want to acquire all the territory they actually control!" The Minister of Foreign Affairs replied
Thinking of Constantinople, the city for which successive Russian tsars have fought, it will soon fall into his hands. Nicholas II is in a good mood!
He smiled and said: "Oh, Ferdinand really dare to think about it, but I promised!"
The Prime Minister questioned: "Your Majesty, the area under the control of the Bulgarians is not small. Once they are all annexed, I am afraid it will exceed our control in the future!"
The Secretary of the Navy asked in turn: "Prime Minister, what about Constantinople if they don't agree to their request? Shall we get it ourselves?
As for Bulgaria will get rid of our control? No one can answer this question. Anyway, I know that as long as the Russian Empire remains strong, there will be no problems! "
The Minister of Foreign Affairs thought for a while and said: "A powerful Bulgaria appears in the Balkans, and what should worry most is the Austro-Hungarian Empire!
After the Balkan War, they bordered Bulgaria, and left it to them to restrict the growth of the Bulgarians. We still have to fully support our allies! "
...
After receiving accurate information from the Russians, Ferdinand was deeply relieved. With the support of the Russians, Bulgaria can take the benefits in his hands!
At this time, the unresponsive Ottoman Empire also started to lobby the great powers in an attempt to gain support!
Inside the Ankara Palace, the Sultan asked expectantly: "How is the situation?"
The Minister of Foreign Affairs said embarrassingly: "Some results have been achieved, but they have not met our expectations!
After I gave in on the Egyptian issue, UU Reading www.uukānshu.com the British agreed to stop supporting the Balkan League; but they rejected our proposal to restrict the Russians together!
The Germans are willing to stand on our side, but unfortunately they are now competing with the British for colony in South Africa, and their influence in the Balkans is too weak!
After we agreed to abandon the Bosnia and Herzegovina region, the Austro-Hungarian Empire expressed its willingness to intervene, but they were unwilling to violently conflict with the Russians! "
The Sultan asked dissatisfiedly: "Are there French and Italians? What about their attitude?"
After speaking, he also realized that he had asked for nothing. Just by looking at the Russian League, you will know the position of the French. The British did not have the energy to intervene in the Balkans, and the French did their best!
The Italians ignore them. The Russians don’t pay attention to them. They have just been running around in Ethiopia. It is estimated that even the small Balkan countries don’t care about them!
The Minister of Foreign Affairs added:
The Romanians are prepared to stand on our side, but after the Russians made a clear-cut attitude, they retracted again!

The sultan said fiercely: "In this case, the powers can't count on it, so let's fight! If all the newly formed troops in the country are transferred to Constantinople, I don't believe it. We can't beat a mere Bulgaria. !"
With the failure of the Ottoman Empire’s diplomatic efforts, the Battle of Constantinople became more intense. With the arrival of a large number of reinforcements from the Ottoman Empire, the two sides began a cruel war of attrition!
In just a few days, the First Army lost the strength of two divisions. Of course, the Ottomans were not easy, they lost even more troops, and even the two walls of Constantinople were broken down. The war has entered a white-hot stage!